Starting a Vegetable Garden

April 23, 2014

I have a small back garden which I love. There is a lawn in the middle and around it are raised flower beds. Last year we got a new fence and when it was put up the men caused a trail of destruction. I lost all the plants that were in the flowerbed. I was a bit annoyed as I had a lovely lavender bush which attracted the bees. It did give me a great excuse for starting a vegetable garden.

When Debt Free Direct challenged me to grow my own vegetables and see if I could save money, I jumped at the chance. Luckily the weather has been a bit nicer recently so over the holidays I managed to tidy up the garden and plant some vegetables. I was sent a great selection of seeds and compost to get me started.

I kept a record of the initial outlay to see if I managed to save any money by growing my own vegetables. I plan to show you my harvest at a later stage, provided everything grows, and work out the savings.The seeds include tomatoes, a packet of Gardeners Delight which are normal sized tomatoes and Roma which are cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, different types of lettuce, cabbage, cauliflower, onions, purple broccoli, butternut squash, runner beans and potatoes. These are all vegetables that I make a lot of use of and would buy on a regular basis. I also received four bags of compost and three potato planters which are a great way to grow potatoes on the patio.

Cost of seeds = £24.10

Cost of compost = 4 x £5 = £20

Cost of planter bags = 3 x £6 = £18

Total outlay = £62.10

I hope to save more than I spent as well as having much tastier vegetables to eat over the next few months. Home grown vegetables taste much nicer than shop bought. Before I started planting I had to sort out the garden. As you can see the flowerbeds were full of weeds and the grass needed mowing. My first job was to get the big giant head out of the garage and install it in the garden. I put it away for the winter so it did not freeze and break. The water feature was soon up and running again.

My second job was weeding out the tubs I have on the patio. These are ideal for growing lettuce and other salad vegetables. I added some extra compost and the lettuce seeds which are already starting to sprout. I also sorted out the herb garden which is also in containers on the patio. Even if you do not have a large garden you can utilise containers to grow some vegetables and fruit, I have a planter which is full of strawberry plants which are lovely fresh off the plant.

Next to the lettuce I planted potatoes in their planters in the corner of the patio. These planters are ideal, you place the seed potatoes inside and as the plants grow you add more soil. They don’t take up much space and look nice as well. I am really looking forward to some new potatoes.

Whilst I weeded the side flowerbeds the dog helped by basking in the sun. I now have peas and runner beans next to the fence and onions in the corner mixed with some flowers for bees. Hopefully I can tell the difference as they grow.Currently my butternut squash, cucumbers and tomatoes are planted in seed trays on the window sill and are growing nicely. I will transplant them into pots soon and put them out when they are a lot bigger and less attractive to snails.

If anyone has some great tips for keeping snails away please let me know. I have to say it was great fun planting vegetables amongst the flowers and I am really looking forward to my harvest. I hope to have an update on how my vegetable garden progresses at a later stage and if I did actually save any money by growing my own.

Disclosure: I was sent the products to help me create my garden courtesy of Debt Free Direct. I was not told what to write and all my opinions are my own.

For the sails I save all the used coffee granules, and spread liberally around my plants. I read that some bureaucrats in Brussels don’t approve of the practice but as I grow veg for us, and not for sale, I don’t care what they think.
Good luck with your project!